Work, work, work and more work!

Firstly apologies to everyone who actually reads this. I didn't realise how much work I would be given this last semster of Uni and I have been unable to update this blog for some time. So Sorry folks. =(

Right enough of the sad times. It is all good times in gaming at the moment thanks to all the studios delaying their games from last year to this year. So far we have had Bayonetta, Mass Effect 2, Dante's Inferno and we still have Heavy Rain, Alien vs Predator and God of War III to come. Yes that does mean i'm going to have to find some more money from somewhere to get all these games.

Mass Effect 2
As most of you may be aware Mass Effect 2 was released a little over a week ago and of course it was a day one purchase for me. The game is phenominal. It upgraded everything from the previous game and removed some of the more tedious parts (driving around in the Mako) and yet somehow added another tedious part (Planet scanning anyone).

The story is bigger and more badass than the first, I won't say anything just incase people haven't finished it yet. Side note to those people that haven't, What the hell are you doing?? Get it done! =P
The characters both new and old have been fleshed out a lot more and we hear a lot more back story about them and their species, which is what you can expect from a Bioware game. Combat has also been pushed to the forefront of gameplay and now plays a bigger role than the previous game. Getting in and out of cover has been tweaked and also collecting extra ammo from fire fights has been added. Yes Mass Effect 2 is certainly a more combat heavy experience but it still doesn't deter from the story telling experience.
There are still a couple of squables I had with the game. Nothing majorly at fault however I did find myself missing being able to fully customise my armour and weapons load outs for me and my team. Yes it took forever and a day to do and yes it was tedious but I just enjoyed it. I'm assuming that these elements were stripped away to make the game more fast paced.
Overall the game is absolutly a must have for any gamer. It has a compelling story, which can change depending on how you play and actions you take, frantic fast paced action and brilliantly fleshed out characters.
Oh and Elcors... =P

I have to admit I was all ready to give Mass Effect 2 a Game of the Year crown and it is still increadibly high on that list however...
If you have been following this blog in my last post I wrote about an ARG called 'Four Days' that is currently running alongside the launch of the game Heavy Rain. Now I have been following Heavy Rain from its first announcement way back when and knew that the game was destined for greatness.
Fortunatly for me and those people playing the ARG we were priviliged enough to get our hands first on the Heavy Rain demo for the PS3.......OH MY GOD!!

Heavy Rain
First thing that has to be said about this game is it is like nothing you will have played before in your life. It is difficult to even describe it as a game as it is more of a series of interactions cut with simple quicktime events. However the events are implented in the most invent way I have ever seen. The QTE's are built in the same way we would do things in normal life, they are based around human psychology. It is very hard to describe but I will attempt to now. The best example from in the demo is when an FBI agent needs to climb up a muddy and wet embankment. His first attempt see's him sliding back down to ground level. Now on the second attempt you are challanged with a multiple set of button presses to allow the agent to climb further. For a normal human to climb this embankment we would need to engage the use of our hands to help climb and stable our balance, so after the agent has taken his first few steps using the Cirlce and Triangle button which control his feet, we are then challanged to use the shoulder buttons as hand grips to pull him up. All the while still holding the face buttons so that his feet don't give out and slip away. At a moment where the mud starts to fall from under his hands the player must switch between holding down the shoulder buttons to clicking repeatedly to mimic the agents frantic hands grabbing at the falling mud.
Another area of the demo pits you in a brawl. The fast paced action mixed with the anxiety of not knowing which action you must perform next to evade the attacker makes the playing the game give you a feeling of actually being in the fight. Being nervous and ready at the same time. It is a very strange sensation. I have also heard that if your character becomes stressed our nervous within the game then button combinations or QTE's become more difficult as their mind is concentrating on other things.
As i said it is a very different and hard game to describe and i suggest that everyone download the demo on Thursday from the PSN and give it a try. You will not regret it.

As for graphics Quantic Dream have gone all out and the facial models and animations are some of the most realistic you will see in any game. Similar to Mass Effect the game is hugely driven by it's story and i can say first hand from playing the 'Four Days' ARG we are in for one hell of a ride.Heavy Rain is due for release on the 26th February and I for one cannot WAIT for its release. As i stated earlier i think this may be my Game of the Year.

Right i think thats most of my gaming news up to date. One more little side note. It is that time of year again for games design students across the UK to gather together and compete in the Dare To Be Digital competition. As this is my final year of Uni and my last chance to enter i am hoping that me and some fellow students will form a team and enter this years competition. I have a few ideas up my sleeve for some games designs so fingers crossed they will be able to come into fruition. I will keep you upto date with my goings on as and when i can. So until next time y'all.

As always feel free to get in touch and post comments.